Last year, Israeli forces posted hundreds of videos on their official pages, including those of the Air Force, showcasing what they often described as "victories." These videos typically depicted airstrikes carried out by the Israeli military across various areas of the Gaza Strip. However, an investigation by Airwars, an organization that investigates civilian harm during conflicts, in collaboration with Sky News, revealed that many of these airstrikes, along with thousands not publicly released, resulted in the deaths of hundreds of civilians. The investigation exposed the extent of civilian harm that was largely omitted from the narrative in Israeli military videos.
Israeli forces released a total of 1,219 videos of airstrikes conducted between October 7, 2023, and August 31, 2024, the period covered in the Airwars and Sky News investigation. Nearly half of these videos were posted in the war’s first month, highlighting the intensity of its early phase.
The analysis found that the videos were often accompanied by captions and descriptions claiming they targeted Hamas fighters or strategic headquarters. In one video, Israel claimed that more than 250 Hamas fighters were targeted. However, the Airwars investigation revealed that the airstrike hit the Al-Taj residential tower in central Gaza without prior warning for evacuation. This incident underscores the discrepancies between Israel’s official statements and the actual outcomes, highlighting the civilian toll.
Most of the videos released by Israeli forces were of low quality and in black and white, making it difficult to identify individuals or assess the situation on the ground. Many videos ended abruptly at the moment of the explosion, leaving the immediate aftermath—including deaths or destruction—unseen. The Israeli military also refrained from disclosing the precise locations of the airstrikes, typically only mentioning the city or neighborhood and leaving key landmarks unclear. This lack of detail raises questions about transparency and accountability.
The Airwars investigative team used geolocation data to match 17 Israeli airstrikes with specific incidents that resulted in civilian deaths or injuries. Their reports on these 17 strikes alone documented 448 civilian deaths.
Alonso Gurmendi, a fellow in human rights and politics at the London School of Economics, said the Airwars investigation "clearly demonstrates how Israel’s targeting practices fall well below accepted legal standards."
A Small Fraction of Israeli Airstrikes on Gaza Uncovered
The attacks detailed in the investigation represent only a fraction of what Airwars documented. Many of the videos released by Israeli forces lacked sufficient detail for thorough analysis. Of the 1,219 airstrikes, the organization was able to geolocate 72, and just 17 were linked to documented incidents involving civilian casualties.
In a video summarizing its findings, Airwars emphasized that the 1,219 documented strikes represent only a "small fraction" of the total Israeli airstrikes on Gaza last year. The organization remarked, "These are the strikes the army chose to disclose—those they wanted the world to see. But who actually died in them?"
Airwars' findings provide tragic answers. Among the 17 attacks examined in detail was a strike on a seven-story residential building, Al-Taj Tower, located in an upscale neighborhood in central Gaza, on October 25, 2023. The airstrike, for which Israeli forces posted footage on their official X account two days later, killed 101 civilians, including 44 women and 37 children.
Marwa Jarada, a 25-year-old Palestinian woman residing in the United States, lost at least 16 family members in the strike, including her parents and sisters. In an emotional interview with Sky News, which collaborated with Airwars, Jarada expressed her profound loss, saying, "My family was everything to me. They were my life. And I lost everyone I loved." She and another relative interviewed by the channel emphasized that Israeli forces did not provide a warning before the strike, contradicting official claims of prior notifications to civilians.
Her relative, Hisham Ahmed Saleh, stressed the lack of warnings, saying, "If there had been any, as they claimed, they would have taken precautions, dressed, and left. But no, they received no information at all." Despite these serious allegations, Israeli forces did not respond to specific inquiries from Sky News regarding whether a warning was issued. Instead, they dismissed Airwars' investigation as a whole, maintaining their position on the conduct of military operations.
In a statement, Israeli forces described Airwars' investigation as "extremely troubling," claiming it was based on "baseless allegations." They also argued that the investigation overlooked Hamas' increased presence among civilians and within residential areas.
Multiple Messages Through Israeli Massacres in Gaza
Legal experts stated that the failure to warn civilians before the Al-Taj Tower strike could amount to a violation of international law, especially given the Israeli army's stated reason for the attack: the destruction of a Hamas military tunnel. Dearbhla Minogue, a senior lawyer with the Global Legal Action Network (GLAN), told the investigative team, "The tunnel wasn’t going anywhere after this attack. There was absolutely no reason not to evacuate the building before launching this attack." Minogue added, "By publishing this video, Israel has left itself with no justification for claiming this was a legal strike."
Experts have indicated that Israel had multiple audiences in mind when releasing footage of these airstrikes. Andreas Krieg, a defense and Middle East expert at King’s College London, explained, "The first narrative they want to push is primarily aimed at the domestic audience, the Israeli public: 'We are winning and making gains.'" This suggests that the portrayal of military successes serves to bolster public support and morale within Israel.
"The second message is one of deterrence, aimed at Hamas, Iran, and Hezbollah: If you attack us, this is what will happen to you," Krieg added. The third audience cited by Krieg and other experts is the international community, which Israel wants to convince that its strikes are targeted. However, the expert noted, "All the footage and clips published by the Israeli army suggest the opposite." This implies a disconnect between the intended narrative and the realities captured in the footage, raising questions about the effectiveness and accuracy of Israel's public messaging regarding its military operations.
Airwars investigators noted a sharp decline in the number of videos released by the Israeli Air Force over the past year, dropping from more than 500 in October 2023 alone to just a few clips in January 2024—the month when South Africa announced its lawsuit against Israel at the International Court of Justice for violating the Genocide Convention. Airwars concluded that this decline might be due to Israel’s concern that the videos could be used against it in court, reflecting a strategic shift in how the Israeli military presents its operations and manages its public relations amid increasing scrutiny and legal challenges.
Minogue emphasized that the videos could be instrumental in holding Israeli decision-makers accountable for their actions. She stated, "It’s absolutely certain that these clips can be used as criminal evidence against the Israeli defendants, as they show a lot [of war crimes]." This underscores the potential legal ramifications of the Israeli military's documentation of its operations, which may be scrutinized in international courts for violations of humanitarian law.
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